February 1991 was approaching, and the All-Star ga was getting ever closer.
Larry Bird’s back injury recurred at the end of January during a ga against the New York Knicks, sidelining him for two weeks.
The Celtics lost several gas in a row, while the Trail Blazers maintained steady performance.
They didn’t have long winning streaks like they did last season but would often take a look back every three steps, winning four or five gas before losing one.
Injuries were the main reason. The veteran Mychal Thompson was constantly in and out of the lineup and almost faded out of the regular rotation.
Mark Bryant, Antonio Davis, and Pinkney often took to the court to consu minutes, introducing more instability to the Trail Blazers’ frontcourt.
The fragile knees and ankles of Sabonis made Beelman pay extra attention to his protection; as his ga responsibilities increased, so did the risk of his injuries.
Reggie Lewis was plagued by back pain and had to apply ice during the gas, but doctors found no major issues upon examination; it might be muscle tension.
Whenever the pain beca severe, the coaching team would give Lewis a break to rest and recuperate.
With the rapid growth of Cliff-Robinson, Jero Kossie in his pri, and the robust and reliable Mike-Sanders, the Trail Blazers had properly solved their small forward position issues.
Conversely, there’s been far more pressure on the Trail Blazers’ guards. Dell Curry’s playing ti significantly increased, supporting the team’s backcourt alongside Petrović and Porter.
It can be said that Jerry West, during the offseason, traded Hornacek and Divac for Reggie Lewis at a high cost, weakening the Trail Blazers’ previously strong frontcourt and backcourt, all in an effort to fill the gap at the forward positions and to specifically counter Michael Jordan.
Whether Reggie Lewis could truly et expectations won’t be known until the season is over.
So far, aside from Ah Gan and Terry Porter, almost all of the Trail Blazers’ main rotation players have encountered injuries to varying degrees.
The Trail Blazers have a deep bench, so even a hint of injury would prompt an imdiate rest for the player, not allowing anyone to play injured.
However, Gan Guoyang seed to be an exception.
After one practice, he complained his leg was sore and asked if he could rest a bit.
Neither Beelman nor Adelman believed it, didn’t even have him checked, and just let him play in the evening ga.
It turned out that Beelman and Adelman’s judgnt was right; Gan Guoyang wasn’t injured at all.
He just wanted a day off to spend ti with his wife and children at ho, which unfortunately, was seen through.
Because Beelman knew that it was harder to have Ah Gan injured than having Barkley give up doughnuts.
As the All-Star ga drew near, everyone’s mood was quite relaxed, and the Trail Blazers had an easier schedule.
After finishing a lot of away gas in December and January, they welcod a more comfortable series of ho gas in February.
On February 2nd, the Trail Blazers would face the visiting Seattle SuperSonics at ho.
After finishing training in the morning, Gan Guoyang called the hotel where the SuperSonics were staying and asked for Gary Payton.
About 15 minutes later, Gan Guoyang had Quentin Stephenson drive them to a Greek restaurant downtown, and Gan Guoyang took the initiative to treat Payton to a al.
The two were old acquaintances, dating back to when Gan Guoyang played for Beiqiao High School in 1981 and t this trash-talker even before Payton was in high school.
When Shui Zhong Team played an away ga at Fremont High School, Payton and his father cheered for Tiger Team from the sidelines and even hurled trash talk at Gan Guoyang.
As a result, Gan Guoyang talked back so sharply that Payton nearly burst into tears. That was the first ti Payton had been "humiliated" by Gan Guoyang.
Later, Payton did not attend Fremont High School, although many of his friends did, because Fremont was too chaotic. Not long before his enrollnt, a young man was stabbed to death in an altercation on Fremont’s basketball court.
Payton’s parents didn’t want their son to study and play basketball in such an environnt, so Payton went to Skyline High School instead—by that year, Gan Guoyang had already won the California championship and had gone to Gonzaga University to study.
Before Payton joined, Skyline High School had never won a championship in the Oakland League of California’s championship, let alone made it to the state tournant.
One reason was that Fremont High School was too fierce, causing everyone to worry about being unable to leave the gym after defeating Tiger Team—though Gan Guoyang’s Shui Zhong Team did it, becoming a San Francisco miracle.
Payton played for four years at Skyline High School, confronted Fremont High School’s players for four years, and had countless trash-talking and brawling incidents.
In his senior year, Payton hit a buzzer-beater in the Oakland League championship ga against Fremont, leading Skyline High School to defeat Fremont Tiger Team and winning the Oakland League title for two consecutive years—however, they lost in the Northern California championship and missed the chance to enter the California state finals.
That year was 1986, when Gan Guoyang had already led the Portland Trail Blazers to defeat the Boston Celtics and won the NBA championship.
To Payton, the San Francisco-born Ah Gan was like a monunt guiding him; he followed in the footsteps of Gan Guoyang on the court.
However, off the court and in the classroom, Payton’s performance was poor; he wasn’t cut out for academics and often caused trouble at school.
User Comments
0 comments from readers